The fallout from England’s humiliating World Cup exit gathered pace on Sunday
as Martin Johnson said his emotions were too raw to make an immediate
decision about his position, the Rugby Football Union’s acting chief
executive, Martyn Thomas, cast doubt on Rob Andrew’s future at the game’s
governing body and the prospect was raised of an independent inquest into
English rugby.

Infighting: England manager Martin Johnson says his emotions are 'too raw' at present to make a decision as to whether to continue in the rolePhoto: AP

By Mick Cleary and Gavin Mairs in Auckland

6:30AM BST 10 Oct 2011

Johnson is considering his future as manager following the 19-12 defeat by France at Eden Park, his three-year tenure having resulted in England’s worst World Cup performance since 1999. Johnson’s contract ends on Dec 31 but Thomas last night suggested that he would get the support of the union if he wanted to carry on.

“I wouldn’t agree that he’s likely to continue or not continue,” said Thomas. “I honestly couldn’t call that. It’s a matter for him to make the decision as to whether he wants to continue into 2015. He has my backing, certainly.”

The England manager was preoccupied and downcast at a press conference in Auckland yesterday, asking for time to consider his options. Nine players returned home last night, with the rest of the 30-man squad due to depart this evening.

Johnson’s future is a key issue for the RFU. His evident desolation suggests that it will not be a straightforward decision for him. He will realise that he would come under pressure to make changes to his own coaching team should he decide to continue.

“The emotions are still very raw and I need to step away from that to get perspective,” Johnson said, professing loyalty to those he had worked in tandem with. “We have a good group of coaches and backroom staff and are very honest with ourselves.”

There was also no attempt to lay the blame for the early exit on the messy internal politics of the RFU. There is no permanent chief executive in place, nor a long-term chairman, while Thomas may be forced into stepping down from all of his positions.

“The RFU has been fantastic with the support that I’ve had,” said Johnson. “There’s this sort of feeling that there’s something dark and sinister at the RFU always waiting to jump out and that’s not the case at all. Everyone’s been really supportive, even in difficult days. In no way has that affected our World Cup.”

Even though Andrew revealed yesterday that he will accept the newly-created role of professional rugby director, with control of all elite rugby matters, it appears that his own department will still come under scrutiny. Thomas, whose own position within the union remains under threat with the spectre of a special general meeting hanging over him, was asked if Andrew ought to resign.

“I can’t say whether Rob would leave,” said Thomas. “If there are failings in the rugby department we need to identify them and determine the course of action that will correct the position.”

Andrew, who sat alongside Johnson at yesterday’s press conference, insisted that he would be leading the principal review into England’s World Cup campaign, even though his role in the running of the elite department would appear to present a conflict of interests. Andrew indicated that it would take four to six weeks for him to conduct his own appraisal before making his recommendations to the RFU management board.

Andrew will be the lead figure in a five-man committee set up to appraise the matter. Under an agreement struck in 2007 with the newly-constructed Professional Game Board, there will be two representatives from Premier Rugby and two from the RFU. “The review will be robust and we will turn everything over,” said Andrew.

That Andrew is more powerful than ever is an extraordinary twist given that he was effectively shunted sideways by former RFU chief executive John Steele at the start of the year. The fallout from that restructuring, with a view to the appointment of Sir Clive Woodward, eventually led to Steele’s dismissal and Thomas, then RFU chairman, being assailed by his own union for his part in the whole farrago.

Woodward, currently working with the British Olympic Association, remains a prime candidate for a performance director role if an external review process, suggested yesterday by senior RFU sources, were to find serious issues with the present set-up.

Andrew, though, is now kingmaker, with the signing of his new contract imminent. “I am going to do it,” he said. “I have been offered the job. It will get resolved in the next few days and weeks.

“The role is a combination of my old elite director role and my new rugby operations director role. It is almost a wider-ranging role around the professional game, effectively being MD of the professional game.”

The new position is all-encompassing. The England team manager will report to the professional rugby director, who will be the first point of contact with Premiership and Championship clubs. He is also charged with the development of referees as well as Sevens teams, with both RWC 2015 in England in mind as well as sevens becoming an Olympic sport the following year in Rio de Janeiro.

Andrew also confirmed the union’s policy of only picking those playing in England now comes into force, albeit there is still a caveat of ‘exceptional circumstances’. Nonetheless the edict would rule out Toulon fly-half Jonny Wilkinson and Stade Francais lock Tom Palmer from consideration. “That is now union policy,” said Andrew.

The World Cup fight may be over but there is little sign of calm waters yet at Twickenham.